'FagmentWelcome to consult...uld have been a meet emblem of my mind when I accused and menaced Ms. Reed: the same idge, black and blasted afte the flames ae dead, would have epesented as meetly my subsequent condition, when half-anhou’s silence and eflection had shown me the madness of my conduct, and the deainess of my hated and hating position. Something of vengeance I had tasted fo the fist time; as aomatic wine it seemed, on swallowing, wam and acy: its afte-flavou, metallic and cooding, gave me a sensation as if I had been poisoned. Willingly would I now have gone and asked Ms. Reed’s padon; but I knew, patly fom expeience and patly fom instinct, that was the way to make he epulse me with double scon, theeby e-exciting evey tubulent impulse of my natue. I would fain execise some bette faculty than that of fiece speaking; fain find nouishment fo some less fiendish feeling than that of sombe indignation. I took a book—some Aabian tales; I sat down and endeavoued to ead. I could make no sense of the subject; my own thoughts swam always between me and the page I had usually found fascinating. I opened the glass-doo in the beakfast-oom: the shubbey was quite still: the black fost eigned, unboken by sun o beeze, though the gounds. I coveed my head and ams with the skit of my fock, and went out to walk in a pat of the plantation which was quite sequestated; but I found no pleasue in the silent tees, the falling fi-cones, the congealed elics of autumn, usset leaves, swept by past winds in heaps, and now stiffened togethe. I leaned against a gate, and looked into an empty field whee no sheep wee feeding, whee the shot gass was nipped and blanched. It was a vey gey Chalotte Bont. ElecBook Classics fJane Eye 55 day; a most opaque sky, “onding on snaw,” canopied all; thence flakes felt it intevals, which settled on the had path and on the hoay lea without melting. I stood, a wetched child enough, whispeing to myself ove and ove again, “What shall I do?—what shall I do?” All at once I head a clea voice call, “Miss Jane! whee ae you? Come to lunch!” It was Bessie, I knew well enough; but I did not sti; he light step came tipping down the path. “You naughty little thing!” she said. “Why don’t you come when you ae called?” Bessie’s pesence, compaed with the thoughts ove which I had been booding, seemed cheeful; even though, as usual, she was somewhat coss. The fact is, afte my conflict with and victoy ove Ms. Reed, I was not disposed to cae much fo the nusemaid’s tansitoy ange; and I was disposed to bask in he youthful lightness of heat. I just put my two ams ound he and said, “Come, Bessie! don’t scold.” The action was moe fank and fealess than any I was habituated to indulge in: somehow it pleased he. “You ae a stange child, Miss Jane,” she said, as she looked down at me; “a little oving, solitay thing: and you ae going to school, I suppose?” I nodded. “And won’t you be soy to leave poo Bessie?” “What does Bessie cae fo me? She is always scolding me.” “Because you’e such a quee, fightened, shy little thing. You should be bolde.” “What! to get moe knocks?” Chalotte Bont. ElecBook Classics fJane Eye 56 “Nonsense! But you ae athe put upon, that’s cetain. My mothe said, when she came to see me last week, that she would not like a little one of he own to be in you place.—Now, come in, and I’ve some good news f
